Whither Virginia? Voters have a clear choice

Walt will be in the old capital today, in mind if not in body, as Virginia voters go to choose between two quite different visions for the future of not just their state but the entire United States of America. Will they choose the delusional wokeness exemplified by the school board of Loudoun County, or the common sense values on which the Old Dominion was built?

The incumbent governor, Democrat Terry McAuliffe, has set the commonwealth firmly on a liberal path toward California-style policies and values. On his watch, the heroic statue of General Lee was removed from its place of honour, and that's all ye need to know about the direction in which he wishes the state to go.

Republican challenger Glenn Youngkin's policies are modelled along the lines of those of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who has concentrated on keeping his state "open for business", in spite of the Covid virus, rejecting mask and vaccine mandates, and other calls to let ideology trump common sense.

The politics and policies of Florida and California are metaphors for those of the entire nation -- left and west vs right and east -- not just on how to deal with the Wuhan flu, but on immigration, the faltering economy, education vs indoctrination, the energy crisis -- virtually every other issue of consequence for Americans today.

In his quest for a second term, Mr McAuliffe has moved even further to the left than he was before, championing teachers' unions and pushing back against parents who oppose transgenderism and Critical Race Theory. He has obviously studied Gavin Newsome's playbook, and is attacking Mr Youngkin and his supporters as proxies for President Trump.

Virginia, particularly the northern part, was not kind to President Trump in the fake election of 2020. All the same, voters now seem more concerned (and rightly so!) about the fitness for office of President Brandon, and the secret agenda of the puppeteers who pull his strings. Results of a poll taken a few days ago show Mr Youngkin in the lead.

Will that lead hold up? Will Sleepy Joe's stumping for Mr McAuliffe pull his nuts (Mr McAuliffe's!) out of the fire? We'll find out tonight. And please do stay tuned, because the result on Virginia could well be the first serious indicator of what's likely to happen nationwide, in approximately 53 weeks.

Footnote: Mr McAuliffe sent a message yesterday to Virginia parents and teachers. Did you catch that play? "50 percent are students of colour and yet 80 percent of teachers are white: We all know what we have to do …. to make everybody feel comfortable." Sounds like a threat to me! If you're a Virginian and you don't like being threatened, you know what to do. Right now!